Mathematicians shine

QE’s participants in this year’s UK Senior Mathematics Challenge easily outstripped the national average tally of certificates – and Year 13 boy Bhavik Mehta performed so strongly that he qualified for the élite British Mathematical Olympiad.

Across the country, the top 60% of those taking part in the UK Mathematics Trust competition receive gold, silver or bronze certificates, but 86% of the 107 QE Sixth-Formers were ranked.

The competition involved answering 25 multiple-choice questions in 90 minutes. Bhavik Mehta, of Year 13, achieved QE’s highest score – 106 out of a possible 125 marks. The best performer in Year 12 was Daniel Cheung. Twenty boys were awarded gold certificates, 29 received silver and 43 bronze.

In addition to Bhavik reaching the Olympiad, Daniel Cheung, Tianlin Zhang and Ravin Parekh all qualified for the Senior Kangaroo – a competition for those who narrowly miss out on the 101 points needed to qualify for the Olympiad. These rounds have now taken place and the results are awaited.

While Year 13 boys’ individual strengths were tested, their Year 12 counterparts enjoyed working as a team in another UKMT event, the regional Senior Team Maths Challenge at the Camden Centre. This competition is run jointly with the Government-funded Further Mathematics Support Programme.

Yash Patel, Ronak Patel, Jas Shah and Daniil Slavin were selected as the QE team (pictured). They finished eighth from 38, competing against leading schools such as City of London and North London Collegiate.

The competition combines mathematical, communication and teamwork skills, and promotes camaraderie among mathematicians from different schools.

“It was really enjoyable and challenging and we were naturally disappointed not to qualify for the national final,” said team leader Yash. “The different rounds were great fun because it was the first time we’ve experienced solving Maths problems as a team, rather than individually.”